The invention relates to a device for cleaning cans or similar container, which are supported in a roughly horizontal position on, for example, the rods of a chain conveyor and are conveyed by means of rollers or guide pulleys through a washing zone and a rinsing zone.
Industrial cleaning of cans presently generally takes place in a washing zone, the cans to be cleaned being passed through it by means of a plurality of guide rollers. In order that the washing liquor or detergent solution can penetrate the interior of the can, the can should be guided at least in the horizontal position.
Following the washing zone the cans are rinsed in various rinsing zones, through which the cans are guided by the chain conveyor via guide rollers. This obviously takes place with the cans in the horizontal position and they must be secured against washing away.
It is then standard practice to remove the cans from the chain conveyor and feed them to a special drying area. However, this is linked with the disadvantage that additional working steps are provided for removing the cans from the chain conveyor and for supplying same to the drying area. For the chain conveyor to continue through a drying area would lead to the disadvantage that the cans would retain their horizontal position and can consequently hold rinsing liquid in the interior thereof and which is not dried in the drying area. This impairs further processing of the can, such as e.g. an internal sealing.
The problem of the present invention is to develop a device of the aforementioned type, in which the cans can be guided by the same chain conveyor in a reliable manner through all the washing and rinsing baths and through a drying area, where reliable drying takes place.